Method of volumetric determination of well bores and the like



Fipaa'ii XR 3,020,952

Feb. 13, 1962 n. w. SULLIVAN 3,020,952

METHOD OF VOLUMETRIC DETERMINATION OF mam. BORES AND THE LIKE Filed Dec. 28, 1959 .20 V 27 26 35 30 V 36 a 22 3 I l i v v gm Fl! l g d 4 A i: g

I i I i w -j7a/7/e/ 14/. J(J///VZ/7 INVENTOR.

, AI'IOE/VEKT carilnitcd States Patent @ffice 3,929,952 latented Feb. 13, 1962 3,020,952 METHOD OF VOLUMETRIC DETERMINATION OF WELL BORES AND THE LIKE Daniel W. Sullivan, Odessa, Tex., assignor to Drilprodco, Inc., a corporation of New Mexico Filed Dec. 28, 1959, Ser. No. 862,327 5 Claims. (Cl. 166-4) This invention relates to a new and improved method for volumetric determination, and particularly to a method for determining the volume of well bores and annular areas therein.

Heretofore, in order to determine the volume of well bores for thereby enabling calculations to be made for cementing a well casing in the well bore, well calipers have been used. when using well calipers for such'purpose, it is necessary to remove the drill pipe and bit from the well bore while running the well caliper which of course means a loss of drilling time. The calipers are also subject to becoming stuck in a keyseat or similar irregular portion of the well bore. which frequently necessitates a fishing job to retrieve the caliper. Also, if a well caliper fails to function on the first run. then further time is lost because the caliper must be re-run.

An object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved method of determining the volume of a well bore without loss of drilling time or any of the other disadvantages in connection with the determination of the volumes of well bores with well calipers.

An important object of this invention is to provide a new and improved method of determining the volume of a well bore without running any well tools in the well bore and while continuing drilling operations.

Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved method of volumetric determination, particularly in connection with a well bore. wherein the vol ume of drilling mud in the well bore is determined during the drilling of the well bore so that the volume of the annular area to be cemented around a casing can be accurately and quickly determined.

A particular object of this invention is to provide a new and improved method of determining the volume of a well bore wherein a flagging material is circulated with the drilling mud during the drilling of a well bore, and wherein the volume of the drilling mud circulated is measured from the time such flagging material enters the well bore until the time it returns therefrom whereby the voltime of the well bore may be readily calculated by adding The invention will be more readily understood from a reading of the following specification and by reference to the accompanying drawings forming a part thereof,

wherein an example of the invention is shown, and where-.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the preferred apparatus used in conducting the method of this invention; and

FIG. 2 is an enlarged plan view of a portion of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1. t

In the drawings, the preferred apparatus for carrying out the method of this invention is schematically illustrated. Preferably, the method of this invention relates to the volumetric determination of well bores and annular areas thereof for the primary purpose of determining the quantity of cement required for cementing a well casing in a well bore. However, it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the preferred method or the apparatus disclosed herein in conjunction therewith.

Considering the preferred form of the invention, as illustrated in the drawings, the method of this invention is carried out while drilling a well bore W with a conventional drill bit B. Since the method of this invention is normally conducted for the purpose of determining the amount of cement to be injected into the well bore W for cementing a well casing (not shown) in the well bore W. the method of this invention is normally carried out when the well bore W is at the correct depth for the cementing operation. or a few feet short thereof, as will be more fully explained. In any event, the method of this invention is conducted while drilling with the bit B and while drilling mud is being circulated in the well bore W in the usual manner for drilling purposes with the hit B. The drill bit B is rotated in the well bore W by means of drill pipe 10 of known construction which is connected at its upper end to a kelly 11 in the usual manner which is schematically shown in FIG. 1.

The kelly 11 has a swivel 14 of known construction connectcd to a derrick hook 15 which is suspended from the derrick D, a portion of which is shown in FIG. 1 schematically. The drilling with the bit B is thus conducted in the usual manner by the rotation of the kelly 11 so as to rotate the drill pipe 10 and the bit B in the well bore W. i

For the purpose of supplying drilling mud or fluid in the well bore W, one or more mud pumps P are provided in the usual manner and a flow line 28 is connected from the mud pump or pumps P to the swivel 14 so as to introduce and circulate the drilling mud or fluid from the pump through the flow line 20, through the swivel 14 and the kclly it to the drill pipe 10. The drilling mud circulates downwardly through the drill pipe 10 and through the drill bit B and is normally discharged from the lower end of the drill bit B to wash the cuttings from the bit B. The drilling mud is then circulated upwardly through the annulus or annular space S between the wall of the well bore W and the drill pipe 10.

. the well bore or ground surface G. In some instances,

a relatively short section of outer casing C is provided" near the upper end of the well bore W after the preliminary portion of the well bore W is drilled. In that event, the casing C at the upper end of the well bore W has a discharge pipe 22 connected therewith which permits fluid to flow from the upper end of the well bore W to a shale shaker 23 ofknown construction and from there the drilling mud returns to a mud pit indicated at 24. The drilling mud in the mud pit 24 is picked up by the mud pump or pumps l which has its suction line H in fluid communication with such pit 24. The mud pump or pumps P also has an inlet 26 with a valve 21 therewith for introducing water into the mud on the suction or intake side of the pump or pumps P for the purpose of controlling the consistency or weight of the mud.

When it is desired to conduct the method of this invention, a volume meter V (FIGS. 1 and 2) is connected in the llow line 20 from the pump or pumps P to the swivel 14. Such volume meter V is of known construc-" Preferably, the meter such time as the method of this invention is not being performed.

In carrying out the method of this invention, the volume meter V is normally inserted into the flow line 20 when the well bore W is substantially completed, but preferably when a few feet of drilling is still required to complete the desired depth of the well bore W. During the installation of the volume meter V in the flow line 20 by means of the releasable couplings or unions 35 and 36, the drilling with the drill bit may continue by the use of another mud pump on a different flow line to the swivel 14 if desired. The installation of the volume meter V requires only a period of live to ten minutes in most cases and so therefore the installation of the volume meter V is rapid and it is not necessary to lose any drilling time.

After the volume meter V is installed in the flow line 20 between the mud pump P and the drill pipe 10, a flagging material such as oats, rice, or painted shells, is introduced into the drilling mud.

Such flagging material may be introduced into the drilling mud by breaking the threaded connection 11a between the kelly 11 and the drill pipe which is schematically shown in FIG. 1 and introducing the flagging material at that point. The flagging material may also be introduced at the intake line 26 on the intake or suction side of the mud pump P.

When the flagging material is thus introduced into the drilling mud or fluid by either of such procedures, the reading or indication on the gauge 30 of the volume meter V is determined. Thereafter, the mud or drilling fluid is circulated with the pump P as previously explained so that the flagging material is permitted to flow with the mud or drilling fluid downwardly through the drill pipe 10, drill bit B and then upwardly in the annulus S for discharge from the upper end or top of the well bore W. In the form shown in FIG. 1 wherein the short section of the casing C is positioned in the well bore W, the drilling mud or fluid is discharged through the line 22 to the shale shaker 23 and then to the drilling mud 24. The flagging material will also be discharged with the drilling mud or fluid through the discharge line 22. and will appear at the shale shaker 23. When the flagging material thus appears at the shale shaker 23, the reading on the volume meter V at the dial 30 is again noted. The difierence between the original reading of the volume meter and the second reading of the volume meter is indicative of the volume of the drilling mud which has passed through the volume meter V from the time that the flagging material was first introduced into the drilling mud until a time when the flagging material was circulated back to the top of the well. It should be noted that to be accurate, an allowance must be made for the period of time that it requires for the flagging material to move from the intake or suction side of the mud pump P to the upper end of the drill pipe 10 in the event the marking material is introduced at such intake line 26.

The volume of the drilling mud or fluid which passes through the volume meter during the time of such flow of the flagging material from the upper end of the drill -pipe to the upper end of the annulus S corresponds with pthe volume of the drilling mud which is required to fill {the well bore W when the drill pipe 10 and the drill bit B are in the well bore W. The total volume of the well bore W can therefore be calculated by adding the volumetric space occupied by the drill pipe 10 and the bit B to the volume of the drilling mud or fluid obtained from the difference between the two readings on the volume meter V. Also, as previously mentioned, if the flagging material is introduced at the intake line 26 rather than at the-upper end of the drill pipe 10, the volume of the fiuid from the pump P to the upper end of the drill pipe 10 must be subtracted from the total volume figure to obtain an accurate numerical value for the volume of the well bore W. V

If it is desired to calculate the annular space between a well casing (not shown) which is later to be positioned in the well bore W in the usual manner and the wall of the well bore so as to determine the amount of cement which will be required for cementing such casing in the well bore W, further mathematical calculations must be made. In making such additional calculations, the volume of the added casing which is to be cemented into the well bore W is subtracted from the total volume of the well bore W which was previously determined, whichleaves the annular space only into which the cement is to be pumped for cementing the easing into the well bore W. Therefore, the annular space between the well casing C which is to be cemented in the well bore W is accurately determined andtherefore the amount of cement.- which is required for such cementing operation may be accurately known in advance.

Various other uses for the invention described above in its preferred embodiment will occur to those skilled The foregoing disclosure and description of the inven- 1 tion is illustrative and explanatory thereof and vnrioul changes in the size, shape and materials, as well a in. the details of the illustrated construction, may be main within the scope of the appended claims without depart ing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A method of determining the volume of a well bore and annular portions thereof without lowering. any well tools into the well bore for such purpose, comprising the steps of, circulating drilling mud with a mud pump from a mud pit through the mud pump to and downwardly.

through drill pipe in the well bore and then upwardly in the well bore annulus between the drill pipe and the wall I of the well bore for return to the mud pit, indicating the volume of the drilling mud being discharged from the mud pump to the drill pipe with a volume meter connected in a flow line between the mud pump and the drill pipe, initroducing a flagging material into the drilling mud and simultaneously determining the reading on the volume meter, circulating the flagging material with the drilling mud downwardly in the drill pipe and upwardly in the annulus between the drill pipe and the wall of the well bore to discharge such flagging material and drilling mud at the top of the well, continuing to discharge drllling mud from the mud pump during the flow of the flag ging material downwardly in the drill pipe and upwardly.

inthe annulus so that the amount of drilling mud being discharged by the mud pump during such travel of the flagging material in the well bore corresponds with the volume of the drilling mud which the well bore would hold if filled without circulating, and determining the reading on the volume meter when the flagging material reaches the top of the well to thereby determine the vol-- ume of the drilling mud which the well bore.would' hold if filled without circulating, whereby the volume of the Q well bore may be calculated without stopping circulation of the drilling mud or drilling of the well.

2. The method set forth in claim I, wherein said fiagging material is a material selected from a group consisting of oats. rice and painted shells.

3. The method set forth in claim 1, wherein the flagging material is introduced into the drilling mud at the.

upper end of the drill pipe at the top of the well.

4. The method set forth in claim 1. wherein the flagi I ging material is introduced into the drilling mud at the intake side of the mud pump.

S. A method of determining the volume of a well bore 3 and annular portions thereof during the drilling of the well bore without lowering any well tools into the well bore for such purpose, comprising the steps or, discharging drilling fluid from a pump through a flow line to drill pipe in a well bore and then downwardly through the drill pipe, drill bit thereon, and upwardly in the annulus between the drill pipe and the wall of the well bore to the top of the well bore for discharge therefrom, introducing flagging material into the drilling fluid and allowing it to flow with the drilling fluid downwardly in and through the drill pipe and upwardly in the annulus to the top of the well bore, and measuring the volume of the drilling fluid discharged from the pump during the time it takesfor the flagging material to travel downwardly in the drill pipe from the upper end thereof and to return to the top of the well bore through the annulus, whereby such measured volume of the drilling fluid from the pump may be used in calculating .the volume of the well bore;

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

